<Wasn’t this a strategy game? Chapter 115>

Asmun was stuck in a cozy storage room, repeatedly looking back and recalling the journal entries he’d made while barely escaping starvation.

Unfortunately, that was where the entries ended.

After narrowly escaping the storage room, he could never find it again, so there was no way to check the journal, but Asmun hadn’t forgotten that bizarre memory at all. Finally, when the Emperor ordered him to find Silverstone, he headed to the Barony of Baster to confirm the truth of what he had seen in the journal.

“Any updates on Roger Levistone?”

Asmun asked quietly, and Ronpell immediately responded.

“Actually, I’ve been researching those with the last name Levistone and found someone who is likely his grandson. He seems to be a Mage. However, he’s been missing for over five years, so it may take some time to trace him.”

“The pursuit?”

“Yes, I tried to track him down, but it seems his magical power is quite formidable. No luck at all. I couldn’t even find out his Mage name.”

Asmun nodded. Someone of that lineage connected to Silverstone would definitely have significant magical power.

Besides, even if they found Roger’s grandson, they wouldn’t be able to trace Silverstone. Another Mage had already taken him.

The name of the Mage who stole Silverstone was not recorded in the journal.

“……”

However, there was a more persistent question in Asmun’s mind than the whereabouts of Silverstone.

Originally, Silverstone’s power was believed to be the power of Hamun, the strength with which the Grand Saint sealed the Demon King, regarded completely as a force for good. However, the journal recorded something quite different.

It was the kind of power so overwhelming that even the Chancellor could hardly manage it, compelling him to bury it and announce false prophecies, and the kind of power that made a local Baron lose control and massacre over 200 people.

‘Then does that mean the power to handle Silverstone must be prioritized over the artifact itself?’

Asmun’s brow furrowed slightly.

His pursuit of Silverstone was no longer just a command from the Emperor.

If he could find him and suppress the dark magic with that power, Patriar would surely also be weakened.

He was confident that Patriar didn’t have the magical power to handle such magic. If he did, he wouldn’t have taken such a long detour.

“Ronpell.”

“Yes, Your Highness. What is it?”

“Do you think it’s possible to gain power through collusion with Dark Sorcerers?”

Ronpell’s head throbbed at the profound question.

“Well, I’m not sure… Is such a thing possible? I’ve heard that power and divine power are innate fields.”

Because his answer stayed within common sense, Asmun didn’t ask further.

From what Asmun knew, usable levels of magical and divine power were gifts only given to the born with it, and while rigorous training could improve them, those who weren’t born with it couldn’t acquire it to begin with.

“Go.”

Finally given the awaited command, Ronpell quickly bowed and exited the study.

Alone in the quiet of the study once more, Asmun silently recalled Eden.

The item received as a reward that triggered Ibthan’s trauma was, as expected, extremely precious.

“A summoning ticket…”

However, Eden couldn’t feel at ease or rejoice with such a good item. She had finally understood why Ibthan was so devoted to monster extermination.

「Why are you so obsessed with exterminating monsters, Minister?」

「I can’t share that much. I don’t feel assured that you’re on my side.」

「Okay, okay! I won’t die until every monster in this world is dead!」

Without understanding his intentions, she felt like slapping her own mouth for all the annoying banter she had made in the past.

“Ugh.”

Eden, with a distressed face, tore at her hair.

The voice of Ibthan’s brother calling out to him desperately for help kept echoing in her ears. Probably, it was a malignant hallucination created by dark magic…

Having accepted the event quest, Ibthan must be feeling something terrible now; thinking about it made Eden unable to fully rejoice over clearing the quest.

‘If only I could hear my parents’ voices just before the accident…’

Just imagining such a horrific possibility made Eden shut her eyes tight. She could only feel admiration for Ibthan, who had listened to such voices and still managed to encourage himself and escape safely.

“……”

But simply feeling sorry wouldn’t solve anything. To truly repay this debt to Ibthan, the only way forward was to exterminate monsters and clear the game so that there wouldn’t be any more victims like him.

“Alright, let’s clear it.”

Determined again, Eden decided to open the prophecy book she’d obtained as a reward from the basic quest.

At a time when she couldn’t anticipate what would happen next, the prophecy book was needed more than ever.

However, what was written in the prophecy book was completely different from her expectations.

“What is this…?”

Eden furrowed her brows.

Information about the basement of the Great Mansion of Yurenga? All of a sudden?

“Could it be another flop… Is this insane? At such a critical time!”

Infuriated, Eden crumpled the prophecy book and tossed it forcefully at the statue of Hamun, but the annoying statue didn’t even budge and just kept pouring water, aggravating her further.

“What I need right now isn’t Jepar’s weaknesses; it’s Patriar’s weaknesses!”

Eden roared, clutching her head. Besides, Jepar hadn’t shown his face since their last meeting.

“Ha, how dare he not come…”

After thoroughly using her like that, he must have lost all affection.

He must have surely heard the news of her becoming a Saint, yet still hadn’t shown his face.

Given his character, he should have been the first to show up, bouquet in hand, offering a toast.

However, she had no right to blame Jepar for turning his back on her.

Yet, instead of telling her how to ease his heart, he provided ways to find his weaknesses?

What a completely useless…

While Eden was grumbling, someone knocked on the door of the Saint’s Room.

Eden got up, picked up the prophecy book lying on the floor, stuffed it into her pocket, and walked to the door to swing it open.

“Saintess.”

“Yes, is it already time for prayer?”

The Priest shook his head awkwardly at Eden’s soulless voice.

“No, that’s not it… A guest has arrived.”

A guest?

Eden’s face looked perplexed.

There was a reception room in the Saint’s Room, but ordinary believers wouldn’t dare disturb a Saint’s private time.

That’s why no one had come to her room this far until now.

‘Could it be Asmun coming to visit?’

But the stiff Priest’s voice immediately shattered that expectation as he uttered a surprising name.

“It’s Grand Duke Jepar Yureng’s visit. May I let him in right away?”

What an astonishingly terrible timing.

The atmosphere in the reception room, which Eden was using for the first time since becoming a Saint, was stiflingly heavy.

Jepar’s entry right after she’d just seen the prophecy about finding his weaknesses.

She couldn’t shake the thought that the situation was turning strange.

The first to break the awkward silence was, as always, Jepar’s smooth voice.

“Have you been well, Saintess?”

Even though it was their first meeting since she became a Saint, his manner of address was as familiar as ever. Instead, it was Eden who felt awkward with that title.

When she last met him, she was an Apprentice Priest. The long time apart was palpable, and the reason she hadn’t seen him also came to mind, making her feel shy again.

Back then, Jepar had said he was fine, but he probably wasn’t, which was why he hadn’t sought her out even after she became a Saint.

“Yes, of course. I hope the Grand Duke has been well…?”

It felt shameless to even ask about his well-being, but Jepar responded with a gentle smile.

“Yes, thanks to the gift you gave me, I’ve been quite at peace.”

His smile looked as if he were saying that all prior grievances were forgiven.

Eden noticed that the brooch she had gifted him was pinned on his chest.

“Thanks to that, I’ve come to realize that you truly are someone I can’t do without, Saintess.”

Jepar’s voice, sweet as honey, was overly affectionate.

‘Is it really fine?’

Eden glanced at him, trying to gauge his true feelings, forcing a small smile.

“That’s a relief. I thought the Grand Duke might be disappointed in me and wouldn’t seek me out again…”

“No way. I’ve always been thinking of you, Saintess. The reason I couldn’t come find you was that I was a bit busy with something I needed to find out.”

His voice contained a hint of leisurely laughter, making Eden feel much more at ease.

“Ah, I see. So, did you find what you needed?”

Eden asked with concern, and Jepar nodded with a smile.

“Yes, thanks to you.”

Thanks to her? Hmm, that sounds like the usual polite chatter.

Only then did Eden allow a faint smile to spread across her face.

“That’s wonderful, really.”

Jepar stared at Eden, who had finally smiled back, and opened his mouth with a beaming expression.

“I’m here today to keep the promise I made last time.”

The promise made last time?

As Eden rummaged through memories to recall, Jepar continued.

“I promised you that I would come to you without hesitation whenever a moment arose when a priest was needed.”

Eden remembered that she had indeed made such a promise to Jepar.

She had resolved to truly help him when the time came, and if this could clear her debt, then it was a fortunate thing. She wouldn’t have to feel guilty anymore.

Eden brightened as she looked at him, raising her lips.

“As promised, I’ll help you with anything. What is it?”

Jepar gazed intently at her face, where her intentions were laid bare, and continued speaking.

“I would like you to marry me, Saintess.”